A variety of packaging solutions exists for laminar articles destined for cosmetic, toilet and cleaning purposes. For simplicity, the ensuing description focuses on tissues, but what is said must be understood in light of the foregoing comment about the wider applicability of the present invention. Tissues may be supplied dry, with lotion, or moistened. Such tissues are typically rectangular in shape and supplied in discrete sheets from a dispensing unit. The dispensing unit has on one of its faces, typically on the upper face, at least one orifice, through which individual sheets can be removed by a consumer.
Early tissue dispensing units were of the "reach-in" type. The consumer was forced to insert his or her fingers through the dispensing orifice, grasp a tissue, and pull it out through the dispensing orifice. Examples of reach-in dispensers and improvements can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,021,002, 3,576,243 and 4,458,810. Over time, the desire for increased convenience led to sequential or pop-up dispensers. In a "pop-up" dispensing unit, a tissue usually extends through the dispensing orifice to an elevation above that of the dispensing unit. The consumer simply grasps the exposed portion of the tissue, without the necessity of inserting fingers through the dispensing orifice. In pop-up dispensing, each tissue has a leading portion. which first passes through the dispensing orifice, and a trailing portion that later passes through the dispensing orifice. Typically, the trailing portion of a first tissue to be dispensed overlaps the leading portion of the next tissue to be dispensed. The overlap is generally measured parallel to the direction of withdrawal of the tissues through the dispensing orifice. The overlap is usually, but not necessarily, the same for each tissue and constant throughout the width of each tissue. As the first tissue is withdrawn by the consumer, the leading portion of the next tissue is pulled though the orifice for later dispensing.
The sequential withdrawal of the succeeding tissue through the dispensing orifice occurs due to interfolding of adjacent tissues. The tissues are folded against one another in a variety of configurations, so that the friction of the trailing portion of the withdrawn sheet against the succeeding sheet pulls the leading portion of the succeeding sheet though the dispensing orifice. Apparatuses for interfolding are complex and expensive. Even when the interfolding is properly accomplished, the tissue to be dispensed frequently falls back through the dispensing orifice. The problem is exacerbated with relatively tall dispensing units, which are often consumer preferred. The usable height of the dispensing unit is often limited to the length of the overlap of the interfolded tissues. This limitation occurs due to the leading and trailing portions of adjacent tissues unfolding inside a dispensing unit taller than the overlap, then the second tissue falls back into the dispensing unit.
Potential solutions to the fallback problem result in additional expenses when trying to dispense interfolded tissues. For example, the prior art has suggested outlining the dispensing orifice to prevent improper dispensing. Yet other attempts in the prior art have disposed adhesive on the film outlining the dispensing orifice. Still further attempts replace the film with paper for environmental reasons. Of course, the use of such film, adhesive and paper represent additional costs, which are ultimately passed onto the consumer. Examples of such attempts in the art are U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,007,605; 3,239,097; 4,200,200; 4,681,240; 5,316,177.
Attempts to improve pop-up dispensing units also include the attachment of the tissues to the removable upper portion of the dispensing unit, so that the first tissue is pulled through the dispensing orifice when the unit is opened. GB 2 163 131 is a case in point. Still another attempt in the art provides a lapping flap which allegedly holds partially dispensed laminar articles against falling back into the dispensing unit. A commercially successful improvement is the dual mode dispensing unit, which allows for either pop-up or reach-in dispensing. Examples of such include U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,890,791, 4,574,952 and 4,623,074.
One problem frequently encountered in the pop-up dispensing units of the prior art is the transition from the reach-in dispensing mode in which the product is shipped to the pop-up dispensing mode, which is preferred by the consumer. The dispensing orifice must be large enough to allow the consumer to reach his or her fingers therethrough to grasp the tissue and begin the pop-up dispensing process. The dispensing orifice, however, must be small enough to constrict the tissues dispensed therethrough, so that a tissue may be separated from the succeeding tissues.
One attempt to resolve the diametrically opposed needs for large and small dispensing orifices has been to make a dispensing orifice that is self threading. As such, the large and small dispensing orifices are interconnected such that the smaller dispensing orifice is contiguous with the larger dispensing orifice. The consumer reaches through the larger dispensing orifice, grasps the tissue, pulls it through the dispensing orifice, and threads it into the smaller dispensing orifice. The consumer then separates the grasped tissue from the succeeding tissue. When the succeeding tissue is needed, it is likewise dispensed and separated from the next succeeding tissue. One significant drawback is that the small orifice does not provide sufficient frictional engagement with the tissues to prevent them from falling back into the package. The problem is further complicated with relatively tall dispensing units. If the tissues are not interfolded, but rather are connected by perforations, the stack of tissues in the taller dispensing unit will eventually become depleted, or nearly so. As fewer tissues remain in the bottom of the dispensing unit, a greater portion of the tissue hangs from the dispensing orifice to the top of the stack at the bottom of the dispensing unit. When this occurs, the weight of the free portion of the tissue increases, thus making it more likely that the frictional engagement with the dispensing orifice is insufficient to prevent the tissue from falling back into the dispensing unit. When fallback occurs, the consumer is frustrated by not only having to reach through the dispensing orifice to retrieve the tissue and start the pop-up dispensing process all over again, but is doubly frustrated because the tissue is well below the dispensing orifice, having fallen to nearly the bottom of the dispensing unit.
Other attempts in the art, as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,526,291 and 5,219,421, show a tissue dispensing unit having three slits, a longitudinally oriented slit emanating from a large orifice and which terminates at lateral slits. The longitudinal slit is flanked by two arcuately shaped peripheral slits in order to create hinges. The drawback to this arrangement is that the large wings formed by the hinges occupy an excessively large area of the top of the dispensing unit. A further teaching in the art shows a dispensing orifice tapering to a single slit which intercepts a second slit transverse thereto. This teaching, however, does not show how to optimise the slits relative to each other, or relative to the rest of the dispensing orifice. A recent attempt as in U.S. Pat. No. 5,516,001 teaches a dispensing orifice spaced apart from a reach-in orifice and connected by an isthmic connection. The isthmic connection has two opposed ends, one end being juxtaposed with each of the orifices. The teaching leads to a disadvantage associated with the length of the leading edge of the tissue. Typically, the edge of the tissue tends to wander into the reach-in orifice, away from the pinching area of the dispensing orifice resulting in erratic dispensing and a high incidence of long sections of tissues protruding from the reach-in orifice. This is clearly an undesirable side-effect since the long leading edges of the tissues can give rise to an impression that the tissues are not stored in a satisfactory hygienic manner, that contamination can easily result from the external surrounds, that the edge of the tissue will interfere with the closing mechanism of the dispensing unit, and that in the case of moisture-impregnated tissues, moisture retention can be severely affected.
It has now been discovered that the present invention can offer a simple and very attractive solution to the above shortcomings of the prior art by providing at least two functionally different orifices that can be positioned on one of the faces of the dispensing unit in order to guarantee easy access to and retrieval of the laminar articles without affecting dispensing performance. The first orifice is designed solely for the dispensing of laminar articles such as tissues. In order to initiate the dispensing process, the top tissue on the stack is easily accessible through the use of the second orifice. Furthermore, in the eventuality of fallback, rethreading is greatly simplified with the aid of the second orifice, which is designed to comfortably permit the fingers of the consumer to execute the necessary step in order to recommence the dispensing process through the first orifice.